Atheist Billboards and the National Political Conventions

Above are two new billboards that, I understand, have been put up by American Atheists in Charlotte, North Carolina, in preparation for the Democratic National Convention. They will remain up for a month.

Billboard companies in Tampa, Florida, where the Republican National Convention is shortly to be held, refused to put at least the Mormon one up. They may have also refused the more generic “Christian” one, but I’m not sure of that.

It is not at all clear that denigrating and distorting the beliefs of others is in any way “reasonable”. Since lots of sectarians are prejudiced against Mormons on similar grounds, apparently the views expressed by these atheists are fully compatible with a view that God exists as a trinity, and that the Bible is the inerrant word of God. Are these bigoted statements the primary product of their reliance on human reason? They do not provide confidence that a society run on atheist principles would tolerate dissent or allow equal citizenship to anyone in any class they chose to denigrate. Indeed, the track record of officially atheist societies like the Soviet Union, the Warsaw Pact netions under Communism, or China indicates a distinct totalitarianism is tightly associated with stamping out religious belief and the living of one’s faith.

Among other things, the fact that some atheists think such advertising would persuade people to embrace atheism demonstrates they are defivient in basic intelligence. They will only attract people who are already bigots, basically people who would join the Ku Klux Klan if it were still a viable organization. I doubt they are going to be attracting intelligent people who use think before they speak.

That some atheists have great faith in the efficacy of public signs, though, is not surprising in view of the many lawsuits they file, in which they allege that the continued vitality of the atheist beliefs of themselves and their children are cobstantly at risk of being altered by the public display of a coupke of references to God in the Ten Commandments, or the statement that America is “one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all”, or the phrase “In God We Trust” on our money. Atheists don’t need to hear or read a rational argument to be persuaded to abandon atheism, the simple recitation of the statement we are “under God” or “trust in God” or “thou shalt not take the name of the Lord in vain” are enough to overcome their mental resustance to belief in deity. Their religious viewpoint is apparently the wimpiest of all.

http://bethandherspinrad.blogspot.com Beth

To quote from The Emperor’s New Groove, “Anything sounds bad when you say it with that attitude.”

The conception of God as a Space Alien is kind of interesting, though. I never thought of it that way, but I guess it depends on one’s definition of “God” and “A

http://bethandherspinrad.blogspot.com Beth

My computer hiccuped on me before I could finish my comment.

“Alien.”

ok, now I’m done.

christine

another reason not to vote at all ??? i did not need it.how can atheists go to a convention, they do not believe in anything….join “american atheists” so you can “believe” in anti something ?????